Romanticism

(4,164 words)

Article Table of Contents

I. As Epoch

1. Literature.

The term “romantic” (from Old Fr. romanz, roman; cf. Ger. romantisch) appeared as early as the 17th century with the meaning “unbridled,” “fantastic,” “wild”; while Romanticism in Europe denotes a period in culture and art. As a movement in literary studies it runs from 1790 to 1825, with offshoots to c. 1850.

¶ Literary Romanticism in Germany is divided into early, high, and late Romanticism. Around 1798, the so-called Jena or …